1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a refrigerator which has a display unit installed on its outer surface for displaying information regarding internal environments of the refrigerator and enabling a user to use the Internet, and more particularly to a refrigerator manufactured to comprise a single controller for performing a multimedia function of the refrigerator.
2. Description of the Related Art
A refrigerator has recently been increasingly widely used in which a display unit with a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen is mounted on the outer surface, typically the front surface, of the refrigerator to display information regarding internal refrigerating and freezing environments of the refrigerator.
Particularly, in such a refrigerator, the display unit is configured to not only display the information regarding the internal environments of the refrigerator, but also enable a user to input control commands. As a result, the user can simply operate the refrigerator through the display unit according to his/her intention and then confirm the operation results through the display unit. Namely, when the display unit installed in the refrigerator functions as a touch pad, the user can input a desired control command into the refrigerator through a control command input window executed on the display unit.
Further, in the case where the refrigerator is constructed to be connectable to an external network such as the Internet, the user can use the Internet through the refrigerator with an Internet browser run in the display unit. Also, the user can shoot a specific image through a camera installed in an upper portion of the display unit, and record his/her voice through a microphone and output the recorded voice through a speaker.
For execution of the various media functions grafted into the refrigerator, as mentioned above, the refrigerator comprises, as shown in FIG. 1, a microcomputer 1 for controlling the entire operation of the refrigerator and internal refrigerating and freezing environments of the refrigerator, a video controller 2 connected to the microcomputer 1 for controlling the camera, an audio controller 3 connected to the microcomputer 1 for controlling the microphone and speaker, and an Internet controller 4 for connecting the refrigerator to the external network.
However, in the refrigerator with the construction as shown in FIG. 1, the media controllers, such as the video controller and audio controller, must be each connected to the microcomputer of the refrigerator in a similar manner to their connections to a general desktop personal computer (PC), thereby making an assembling process of the refrigerator complicated and increasing parts costs required in manufacturing the refrigerator.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a refrigerator having a multimedia function, wherein an exclusive single media controller is provided to perform the multimedia function, thereby making an assembling process of the refrigerator simple and suppressing an increase in parts costs required in manufacturing the refrigerator.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a refrigerator comprising: a microcomputer for controlling refrigerating and freezing environments of the refrigerator; a display unit for displaying information regarding an operating state of the refrigerator; and a media controller installed on a single board along with the microcomputer for processing the operating state information of the refrigerator to display it on the display unit, the media controller being connectable to an external network.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for operating a refrigerator, comprising the steps of: a) inputting a multimedia associated command to a microcomputer and then transmitting the inputted command to a media controller, the microcomputer controlling the entire operation of the refrigerator, the media controller controlling a multimedia function of the refrigerator; b) allowing the media controller to process the multimedia associated command transmitted at the step a); and c) allowing the media controller to control output means in accordance with results of the process at the step b).
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for operating a refrigerator, comprising the steps of: a) inputting a refrigerator control command to a media controller and then transmitting the inputted command to a microcomputer, the media controller controlling a multimedia function of the refrigerator, the microcomputer controlling the entire operation of the refrigerator; and b) allowing the microcomputer to manage and control the refrigerator in response to the command transmitted at the step a).